Cherry Rides the Rollercoaster of Friendship
by PerkyGoth14
Summary: Cherry is having a dilemma in her love life when she feels like she's in love with the nephew of Drell, but doesn't want to admit it to anybody. The others then decide to take her to Equestria Land: the new theme park in town to distract her, but it becomes a test of friendship, especially when Rarity is given a new job with Cherry as her assistant.
1. Chapter 1

Cherry soon checked her phone and got a group text from her friends to meet up before she left her room and came downstairs.

"Hey." Drell said, looking right at her as he sat on the couch.

"Gah!" Cherry yelped at him, not knowing he was there and dropped her phone from the surprise.

"Where you going?" Drell asked.

"Out with my friends..." Cherry said as she soon picked up her phone. "Do you mind?"

"Okay, okay, but you should know that Equestrian magic will be involved soon." Drell informed her.

"Of course it will be..." Cherry sighed. "Did you have to come to my house to tell me that?"

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you about my nephew..." Drell said to her.

"You mean Thor?" Cherry asked. "The guy that was in love with me?"

"Yes..." Drell smirked.

Cherry shuddered from the memories of being told that Thor was Drell's blood relative and how obsessed he was with her before she forced a grin. "Erm... What about him?" she then asked.

"He wants to take you out for a good time, and I told him that you would." Drell replied.

"Wait, what?" Cherry gulped.

"Hey, you didn't have the guts to tell him at the Muppet Theater, when he came home, he talked about how much fun he had with you," Drell replied. "You must've gotten scared."

"Well, uh, I didn't wanna upset anyone who was related to you..." Cherry smiled nervously.

Drell face-palmed as he now understood why she didn't tell his nephew.

"Please don't turn me into an animal for 100 years!" Cherry begged, falling to her knees. "I'm sorry, but I can't date him!"

"Why did you think I was going to force you to date my nephew?" Drell asked.

"Because you hate me...?" Cherry replied.

"Anyway, I won't force you to date him." Drell told her.

"Heh... Wow..." Cherry said before frowning. "Ooh..."

"You feel guilty now, don't you?" Drell guessed.

"Uh... Yes, actually..." Cherry admitted. "I mean, he's very sweet and kind... A bit overdramatic... Actually a lot overdramatic... I don't think a boy my age has been that kind to me in... Ever!"

"Hmm..." Drell said before bringing out what looked like an X-ray machine. "Please step in here."

"Must I?" Cherry sighed before going towards the machine. "This won't hurt, will it?"

"No, it's just going to scan you and see if you have a second you that's actually in love with Thor." Drell told her.

"Gross..." Cherry grimaced.

The machine began to scan Cherry. Cherry felt a little bit nervous.

"Can't say I've seen you act this way around anyone before..." Drell said to her as they waited for a few moments.

"Well, not a lot of boys my age are nice to me..." Cherry replied. "Plus, I'm almost an adult now, so I guess... Forte really does care about me... Even if he gives me boring after school lessons."

* * *

After some time, the machine went ding, telling them that it got the results. Drell soon took the results.

"Can I get out of this now?!" Cherry asked.

"Hmm... Let's see..." Drell said as he took a look, ignoring her. "According to this, your heart tends to lean towards anyone who shows kindness and generosity towards you, and you're not just afraid of rejecting Thor because he's my nephew, but because you might break his heart."

"Um, alright?" Cherry said out of confusion as she already knew that.

"That and there does seem to be another you in you that's in love with him." Drell said.

"Can I get down now?" Cherry complained.

"I'm sorry, Cherry, I guess I misjudged you..." Drell said before walking away right now.

"Where are you going?!" Cherry cried out. "Don't leave me like this! I hate you!"

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Drell asked.

"Are you gonna let me go?" Cherry narrowed her eyes.

"Work on that attitude of yours..." Drell glared back before letting her go.

"I will." Cherry said.

Drell soon went to get his spell book and kept it safe for later. Cherry texted the others that she was on her way and soon went to go into town to meet up with them. Once she did that, Cherry was off to where to meet them.

* * *

At the Mall, people were shopping and looked at Cherry as she ran as fast as she could.

"Oh, why couldn't I had been the goddaughter of The Flash?" Cherry groaned to herself.

"Hey, Cherry, you made it." Mo smiled.

"Hey... Guys..." Cherry panted a bit.

"Whoa, you better sit down." Atticus said.

"Thanks..." Cherry gasped before sitting down at their table.

"You know you could have just texted us to come and pick you up." Mo told her.

Cherry's eyes widened and she soon face-palmed herself for not thinking about that. "Why didn't I think of that?" She groaned.

"We'll take you home." Atticus offered.

"Fair enough," Cherry said, a bit frazzled. "Is it me or is my life becoming more and more dangerous?" She soon bumped into someone and was about to fall. "Whoa!" she then yelped.

"Gotcha." The person said before catching her.

"Thanks." Cherry said before seeing it was Thor.

"Hi!" Thor smiled.

"Gah!" Cherry yelped and stepped back a little before forcing a smile. "Hi, Thor..."

"What are _you_ doing here?" Atticus smiled at his male human best friend.

"Oh... I was just in the neighborhood..." Thor smiled innocently. "...Getting away from my sister..."

"She must drive you nuts." Mo smiled back.

"She really does..." Thor muttered before doing a high-pitched voice. "Ooh! I want a tea party! I wanna be a Sky Dancer when I grow up! I'm so pretty and cute!"

Cherry couldn't help but laugh at the imitations. Atticus and Mo looked at her.

"What? It was funny!" Cherry defended.

"I guess it was." Rarity said.

"So, girls, what's up?" Atticus asked. "We're all here."

"Somebody has unspilled beans at this table, and it's not me, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Twilight Sparkle, or Sunset Shimmer!" Pinkie Pie smiled before looking to the others. "Is it you guys?"

"Unspilled beans?" Patch asked out of confusion.

"Spilling the beans mean to reveal something secret or unknown to someone." Mo explained.

"Oh, yeah." Patch said.

"Anyway?" Cherry looked over to the girls.

Applejack took a deep breath before explaining. "Rarity and I applied for summer jobs at the new theme park."

"You did?" Mo asked.

"Uh-huh." Applejack smiled and nodded.

"Equestria Land?" Pinkie Pie beamed. "Wait... Will you get to go there for free?!"

"Actually, they pay us to go there." Applejack clarified.

"That makes sense." Patch said.

Pinkie Pie squealed and even shook Cherry in excitement.

" **PIN _KIE_!**" Cherry complained from the shaking.

"Oops, sorry." Pinkie Pie smiled sheepishly.

"We applied to work side-by-side as caramel apple girls." Applejack told their friends.

"Yes. It's not that I'm nervous, but... Applejack, you're perfect for the job..." Rarity said, sounding a little nervous. "And, well, my résumé is less apple-centric."

"Apple-centric?" Mo asked.

"Well, like Applejack said..." Rarity sighed. "Who has better experience with apples than her?"

"True." Atticus nodded.

"We'll be together. I got a good feelin'." Applejack chuckled to Rarity.

"No missed calls while we were talking about caramel apples," Rarity huffed. "Shall we practice answering our phones and sounding calm?"

Both of their phones soon went off which caused Rarity to panic.

"That was about as calm as Pinkie Pie on Cake Day." Sunset smirked.

"Was it today? Did I miss it?!" Pinkie Pie yelped.

Cherry soon shoved a smoothie in Pinkie Pie's face to distract her.

"Ooh, smoothie." Pinkie Pie smiled.

"One new email!" Rarity called out.

"It's from the park!" Applejack added.

"Oh, great!" Mo smiled to them. "Alright, well, don't keep us in suspense, open 'em up!"

"Yeah, both of you, go on, open 'em!" Atticus smiled.

"Okay, okay... Same time..." Applejack said, taking a deep breath in and out. "One... Two-"

"Too late! I opened mine!" Rarity said before screaming and then frowning. "Oh. They said I'm overqualified for caramel apple girl."

This made the others frown to her at first.

"They want me to be lead parade costume designer!" Rarity then announced.

"That's amazing!" Mo smiled. "Already hired and they already promote you."

The others chattered in excitement for Pinkie Pie.

"That's great news!" Thor smiled as he had his arm around Cherry as she soon looked uncomfortable by it, but didn't say anything.

"That's gotta be a record." Rainbow Dash smirked to Rarity.

"And what about you, Applejack?" Atticus asked.

"Ah _didn't_ get the job." Applejack said.

"Oh... Sorry about that..." Atticus frowned.

"But Ah'm real happy for you, Rarity." Applejack told her.

"Oh, pffft. There must be a mix-up, darling." Rarity replied.

"Obviously, the internet mailman gave you the wrong letter," Pinkie Pie smiled, putting her hand on Applejack's shoulder. "I know that's not how the internet works, but I'm trying to cheer you up."

"Technically, Rarity didn't get the job, either, since she got a different job," Sci-Twi clarified. "So they're probably about to send another email with your promotion."

Applejack's phone soon went off again and where this made her think she got another email with her promotion. Everyone looked hopeful at first.

"Just a sale at Stinky Bottom's Discount Hat Emporium." Applejack then groaned.

"40% off!" Rainbow Dash smiled until she saw the others looking at her. "Oh, sorry, not helping."

"Rarity, are you still going to take the job?" Mo asked.

"Well, I'm not going to accept it without Applejack, obviously." Rarity replied.

"What?! You cannot let this opportunity pass you by, Rarity. Think of all those vision boards, the late-night sewin'," Applejack told Rarity. "This has been yer dream since... Since Kindy-garten."

"That's like my cousin Raven, she was designing since she was in diapers," Cherry said. "...Or she told me that she designed her own diapers... I don't always listen whenever she talks about fashion."

"Anyways, Applejack's right, Rarity," Atticus said. "This has been your dream."

"My mind is made up," Rarity soon said. "We planned to spend the summer and... That's what we're going to do. Riiiiiiiight?" she then looked right to Applejack.

"Yer takin' the job and that's final." Applejack smiled.

"Okay, if you insist!" Rarity replied before squealing. "I'm gonna be a costume designer!"

"Wahoo! Congratulations, Rarity." Mo smiled.

"Way to go." Cherry added.

"This must be Heaven for you." Atticus helped.

"Heh-heh. All right," Applejack chuckled sheepishly before looking up to Sunset Shimmer. "Ah probably shouldn'ta quit my old job this mornin', huh?"

"I'm sure they haven't replaced you already." Sunset smiled.

"By the way where, did you work at?" Cherry asked Applejack.

"The Smoothie Shop around there." Applejack said, pointing to the shop where Bulk Biceps seemed to be where Octavia and Derpy came for something to drink.

He didn't exactly do a great job with the smoothie. Sunset then shrugged to Applejack.

"How about working with your family?" Patch asked.

"Hmm... Ah s'pose it couldn't hurt..." Applejack replied.

"Better than nothing." Thor said.

"Yeah..." Applejack smiled.

"I'll be visiting the park soon too," Thor said. "I gotta take my sister... Hey, Cherry, you wanna be my date?"

"Oh! Uh... Um... Well, I..." Cherry stammered as she was put on the spot like that.

A part of her seemed to be excited about this.

"I knew you'd be excited!" Thor smiled to her before walking away. "I'll pick you up later."

 _'What is wrong with you?'_ Cherry thought to herself critically. _'Just tell him you're not interested in him!'_

 _'But **I** am.'_ A second thought said.

Cherry seemed cross-eyed with her internal thinking.

 _'What is going on in here?!'_ The first thought asked.

 _'Ah, come on, loosen up so I can be free~...'_ The second thought replied. _'Don't you remember that time with Atticus and Elsa?'_

 _'Yeah, I remember.'_ The first thought groaned.

 _'So, what're you waiting for?'_ The second thought smirked.

 _'No, we're just imagining things!'_ The first thought argued. _'You just stay where you are! Cherry Butler is never dating someone related to that monster we're forced to call a mentor!'_

 _'Just let me out!'_ The second thought begged.

 _'NO!'_ The first thought glared.

Cherry just sighed to herself as she knew this was going to be an overwhelming time for her.

* * *

After a while, everyone went back home and Cherry went to hers, getting new things on her mind as she came through the door, trying to ignore her second thoughts about Thor, thinking it was maybe just a phase or a misunderstanding. Unfortunately it was neither of those. Cherry soon came home and went to lie down on the couch, putting on the TV to get her mind off of the situation.

"Cherry, I hear one of your friends is gonna be working in the new theme park!" Michelle's voice beamed from the kitchen.

"Yeah, Mom." Cherry replied.

"That's great." Michelle smiled.

"Yeah, it is..." Cherry nodded, though sounded distant.

"Oh, it's so exciting, oh, you know what you should do?" Michelle replied. "You should go for support!"

"Uh-huh." Cherry said, still distant.

"Oh, I'm so happy for you!" Michelle smiled. "You're lucky to have such good friends."

Cherry let out a small groan about her mother's naivety. A glow started to come out of her chest.

"What the...?" Cherry's eyes widened and she held her chest. "No, no, stay in there!"

The light soon shot out and where it was a second Cherry.

* * *

"No..." Cherry whispered in dismay.

"I'm free!" The second Cherry beamed.

"Oh, no, you're not!" Cherry glared at her double.

"Look, I love Thor, and that's that." The second Cherry told her before running out.

"Get back here!" Cherry called out before chasing after her double. "No one must ever know!"

"Dang it." The second Cherry groaned.

"You are going to stay away until you think about what you've done..." Cherry said, locking up her double in the closet.

"But Thor!" The second Cherry pouted.

"I'll worry about him, you stay put." Cherry glared, shutting the door and locking it.

"Hmph." The second Cherry pouted.

"What's the worst that could happen, really?" Cherry asked herself before seeing Rarity's text about her coming for support and she shrugged, thinking that would be a fair enough distraction and accepted it. She soon went off, thinking her double would stay put.


	2. Chapter 2

"Another day bites the dust..." Cherry sighed as she crossed another day off of her calender for the summer vacation as she and the others would be back in school before they'd know it.

Rarity wandered around the front gate and looked over. "Oh, Cherry, it's good to see you." she then smiled.

"I guess everyone else is busy..." Cherry said as she walked over. "So, what do you need help with?"

"I just suppose I'm a little nervous without Applejack here," Rarity smiled nervously. "You always seem so calm under pressure, so that's why I asked you."

"I get it, you need a friend to help you through this." Cherry said.

"Yes..." Rarity grinned bashfully. "Thank you for coming."

"Let's go then." Cherry nodded.

* * *

They both walked inside and wandered around to find the person they needed to talk with about working here. It seemed to be another teenage girl, though slightly older than them.

"Is that her?" Cherry asked Rarity.

"I believe so..." Rarity nodded and walked with her to the girl.

"My name is Vignette Valencia, and to answer your first question, yes, I'm that 'Vignette', but no, I do not think I'm better than you just because I have 3,000,000 followers on SnapGab." The girl introduced herself.

"Whoa, that's a lot." Cherry said.

"More than you'll hit." Vignette replied.

Cherry glared at that slightly.

"You're up to 3,000,000 now?" Rarity asked in amazement before keeping calm. "I mean, yes, uh, yes, I-I am familiar with your online repertoire."

"I have a good feeling about you, Rare," Vignette told the fashionista. "Oh, you have to let me call you Rare, it's the perfect name for lead parade costume designer."

 _'She sure likes to talk.'_ Cherry thought to herself.

Rarity smiled as this was going well for her so far.

"Not a... Um, caramel apple girl," Vignette continued as she looked at a folder. "I don't even know why you applied for a job like that. Not with a SnapGab feed like yours."

"Oh." Rarity said as they walked.

"Obviously, I looked you up. Great pictures, by the way," Vignette smiled. "That gingham and linen sundress caught my eye, and your follower count is 'im-press-ive'. For someone just starting out, of course. But I can already tell you've got magique inside."

 _'Oh, you have no idea of how close you are about that.'_ Cherry thought to herself.

"Magi-You can?" Rarity gasped.

"The light parade is the most important event in the park," Vignette smiled to Rarity. "Over a hundred cast members, and you are gonna make them look perfect."

Rarity sighed happily to that.

"Oh. And before I forget, don't put anything on that table. Especially your phone. No reason," Vignette then said. "Just a super-important rule I made up, K? Have your assistant make note of that for you." She then added with a glance to Cherry who looked offended by that assumption.

"Assistant?" Cherry glared.

"Ooh, Cherry, isn't this exciting?" Rarity beamed as Vignette left them alone.

"Uh... Well... Um..." Cherry said as she wasn't the fashion type, but saw Rarity grinning and tried to smile back. "Uh... I like to see you happy."

Rarity soon saw the second Cherry with Thor and did a double take. Cherry muttered to herself before looking over and let out a startled gasp. The second Cherry smirked to her double and stuck her tongue out as she held hands with the warlock teen.

"Uh, darling, am I seeing double?" Rarity asked Cherry.

"Uh... I'll be right back..." Cherry grinned nervously before running off.

* * *

"I'm having a wonderful time, Thor, even if your uncle does cause my life to be a nightmare almost every single day." Cherry 2 smiled.

"Yeah, sorry about that." Thor smiled back sheepishly.

Cherry yelled out and soon went to tackle her double only to miss as they walked away.

"What was that?" Thor asked.

"Oh, nothing." Cherry 2 smiled nervously.

Cherry growled in defeat.

"Um, I'm glad you decided to come with me to this park..." Thor smiled. "I knew from the moment I laid eyes on you, you were something special."

"You did...?" Cherry asked, a bit softly.

"Yeah." Thor nodded.

"You're just so sweet and special to me..." Cherry 2 said to Thor. "I always love a gentleman who would do anything to make me happy and not worried."

"I'll always lift your spirits and cheer you up when you need it." Thor added.

 _'I feel like such a jerk.'_ Cherry thought to herself as she soon leaned against the wall.

Thor and Cherry 2 continued to walk off together to have some fun as she watched them go and have fun. Once they were far enough away, Cherry soon went back to Rarity.

* * *

"Are you alright, Cherry?" Rarity asked. "You look a little pale."

"I'll be fine... I just... I guess I just needed some fresh air..." Cherry said. "Sorry for suddenly leaving like that."

"It's quite alright, darling." Rarity said.

"By the way, I don't want to be called your assistant." Cherry told her.

"I know, I didn't mean for that to happen, I apologize..." Rarity frowned softly. "Vignette must've thought you were."

"And you didn't even correct her?!" Cherry replied.

"Oh, um, I'm sorry about that too..." Rarity smiled sheepishly.

"Let's just get to work." Cherry sighed.

"Erm... Right... Let's..." Rarity agreed.

"You're going to be fine," Cherry told her. "With or without Applejack."

Unfortunately, Rarity's work seemed much harder than anything else.

"Why did I come here again?" Cherry mumbled.

Rarity looked to her and Cherry forced a supportive smile to keep up her self-esteem. She soon decided to go and call Applejack. Cherry soon looked like she was worked to death as Rarity called the Apple farm.

* * *

Applejack was inside of a barrel with her siblings as they were working together. She soon heard her phone go off as she answered it. "Rarity!" The country girl answered in surprise.

"Applejack! Darling!" Rarity replied. "How's work on the farm?"

"Fantastic! Ah could not be happier... Makin' foot-stompin' applesauce the old-fashioned way with my family." Applejack replied with a hint of insecurity.

"Less chatter, more splatter." Granny Smith told her.

Applejack smiled nervously to her grandmother while working.

"Oh, good," Rarity smiled. "I'm so happy for you."

"And Ah'm happy for you and your new job, too." Applejack replied.

"Oh, yes, well..." Rarity replied with nervous laughter. "It's certainly a big job."

 _'She has to tell her the truth.'_ Cherry thought to herself.

"Ah'm sure you won't slip up." Applejack told Rarity.

"Well, I-I was calling, because, you see, well, it's not that I'm... Nervous or anything silly like that, but I-I-I was wondering if... If you and the others wanted to come on opening night to see the parade. VIP passes!" Rarity soon replied. "You can cut the lines!"

" _Please_ just tell her!" Cherry begged.

Rarity put her hand up to make Cherry wait as she was on the phone.

"Rarity!" Cherry cried out.

"You bet yer britches, missy!" Applejack reassured Rarity. "Ah wouldn't miss yer big night for the world!"

"Applejack, please! Come! We need your help!" Cherry cried out.

"Applejack?" Rarity frowned. "Darling? Hello?"

"Did she hang up...?" Cherry asked.

"I... She just... I'm sure she's fine." Rarity smiled.

"Rarity, you can't procrastinate like this," Cherry told her before glancing away. "You have to use the direct approach with people, otherwise they're just gonna think they can do whatever they want unless you tell them no right away, but you can be nice about it without sounding mean..." Her eyes then widened as she remembered being told that about a certain warlock teen who would think she was interested because she didn't tell him no right away and just stalled.

"Is something wrong, darling?" Rarity asked.

"Uh... Let's just say I'm learning a lesson the hard way, and I don't want the same to happen to you." Cherry advised.

"I suppose you're right." Rarity sighed.

"I guess it's time to go back to work." Cherry said as she cracked her knuckles.

"Indeed." Rarity nodded.


	3. Chapter 3

As time went by, the theme park was soon opened for the public and almost everybody was there, including the Humane Seven, well, almost all of them for obvious reasons.

"Equestria Land opening day!" Pinkie Pie beamed as she was more excited than anyone else. "What should we do first? Appleloosa Wild West Stunt Show? Nightmare Moon's Haunted Castle? Sugarcube Everything?!"

"Pinkie Pie, how much sugar have you had?" Mo asked.

"Ooh, maybe just a teensy bit more than my usual whenever I have cereal for breakfast." Pinkie smiled innocently.

"Wow." Atticus said.

"Now, hang on. Ah got the sense Rarity's overwhelmed, which is understandable," Applejack said to the others. "Ah mean, she's all alone here without any of her friends. Which is why Ah wouldn'ta taken the job, but that's just me. Uh, point is, we're here to support Rarity."

"That's right." Patch nodded.

A group of girls squealed and beamed while rushing over to see Vignette up close.

"I didn't know Lady Gaga worked in the park." Mo muttered.

"Who's that?" Patch asked, pointing to Vignette.

"Oh, Patch, that's Vignette Valencia!" Pinkie announced like it was obvious after finishing her cotton candy and before showing her phone. "She's famous on SnapGab, which you'd know if you actually logged in once in a while. You're missing my 'One Cupcake Every Day' series."

"She even has her own saying." Mo sighed.

"She posts a lot of pictures of her Welsh corgi named Yaas Queen." Fluttershy added.

"And she's friends with, like, every awesome athlete in the world!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

"Wow." Patch said.

The others soon looked to Sci-Twi.

"Don't look at me," Sci-Twi replied. "I only follow bots that post interesting science facts."

"Really?" Mo asked.

"These are her pictures?" Applejack asked as she looked through the phone and the others looked with her. "'Chillin sandy style'? 'U no how I do'? 'I came I saw I vintaged'? Okay, somebody tell me why this picture has 20,000 likes."

"The internet is full of morons!" Atticus replied.

"Atticus..." Mo whispered about him using that word.

"Sorry, I'm just used to Cherry saying that by now." Atticus smiled sheepishly.

"But he's right." Patch said.

'#Bangs.' Vignette said on the phone.

"Uh, Ah don't know," Applejack said to her friends. "Spendin' all that time just to look good in a picture ain't my idea of fun."

"Same here." Mo, Atticus, and Patch added.

"There you are!" Rarity's voice called.

Cherry looked exhausted from the hard work as she walked with Rarity. "Took you guys long enough." The perky goth groaned to them.

"Here comes the lead parade costume designer!" Applejack smiled to their fashionista friend.

"Guilty as charged!" Rarity giggled before hugging Applejack.

"Whoa, Cherry, you look worse than Dodgeball Day in school." Mo said to her cousin.

"So much work." Cherry twitched.

"If Drell needs you for anything tonight, I'll tell him to come back later or else he'll answer to me." Atticus whispered, both comforting and strictly. Comforting since she was his best friend and threatening for the other reason.

"Aww, you're so mushy~" Cherry teased, but was thankful about him looking out for her like that.

"I mean it." Atticus said.

"So do I, at least nothing weird has happened yet." Cherry replied.

Cherry 2 was soon walking by with Thor as they shared a smoothie together with two straws.

"Uh, like that?" Rainbow Dash asked as she pointed to Cherry 2 and Thor sharing a smoothie.

"I _thought_ I saw another Cherry!" Rarity replied.

"Cherry, do you have a twin sister?!" Pinkie Pie gasped. "Oh, she should totally meet my sisters! You guys remember Maud, but there's also Limestone and Marble!"

Cherry began to explain about Cherry 2.

"So... If a part of you is in love with someone, that other half gets reborn into a new life and pursues that person?" Fluttershy asked.

"Something like that, yeah..." Cherry replied. "I think we first found out about it when we had that adventure with Anna and Queen Elsa."

"Ooh." Pinkie Pie smiled.

"It's really weird..." Cherry said.

"Who is that boy anyway?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"That's Thor, my teammate from football," Atticus replied. "He's my best friend."

Cherry glared.

" _Guy_ friend!" Atticus said quickly. "My best _guy_ friend!"

"That's what I thought." Cherry glared.

"He seems nice and strong..." Fluttershy said. "Um... Good for you, Cherry... Uh, your double that is, not you you."

"It's okay, I know which one you meant." Cherry said.

"So? You've been here solo without your other best friends all this time," Applejack said to Rarity. "How can we help?"

"You can carry me home to let me take a three day nap," Cherry smirked. She could tell Applejack wasn't falling for her attempt in getting out of this. "Come on! I've been working for so long!" she then complained and groaned.

"Alright." Atticus said.

"Thank you." Cherry said.

"You can just go to bed early after we're done!" Atticus smiled.

Cherry narrowed her eyes. "Are you The Devil in disguise?"

"Come on, Cherry; this time, you and Rarity will have help." Atticus said.

"I must've been a huge sinner in a former life to have a newborn life this so mercilessly cruel." Cherry groaned slightly.

"Hold that thought," Rarity told the others and called out to the social media celebrity. "Vignette! Over here!"

"You _know_ Vignette Valencia?" Applejack asked Rarity out of surprise.

"Pfft. Do I know her?" Rarity replied with a scoff.

"Unfortunately." Cherry mumbled.

Rarity and Vignette soon air kissed each other once they came to each other.

"Why, she's my best friend at the park." Rarity smiled.

Hearing Rarity say this caused Applejack to gasp.

"Ooh, friendship triangle~..." Mo commented.

"Selfie! Oh, but can we use your phone?" Vignette smiled to Rarity. "Mine's been acting super-weird lately."

Rarity smiled and soon took out her own phone.

"Thanks. You're the best!" Vignette smiled back to that before they took a picture together.

"Oh, Rarity has no idea what she's done." Cherry whispered.

Applejack was both shocked and hurt.

"Everyone, this is Vignette Valencia," Rarity introduced. "She runs P.R. for the park, and she's mine and Cherry's boss."

"I told you not to use the 'B' word," Vignette told her. "I'm your... 'Friend'... Who gets to boss you around!"

"So basically you're our boss." Cherry said blankly.

"Oh, you're so silly, Berry." Vignette smiled.

"It's _Cherry_." Cherry narrowed her eyes.

"Whatever." Vignette smiled with a laugh.

Rarity then nervously laughed along with her.

"Oh, I'll show you whatever." Cherry glared, about to strangle Vignette.

"So this is Sunset Shimmer, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Twilight Sparkle, you already know Cherry, and that's Atticus, Mo, Patch and Fluttershy." Rarity introduced, stopping Cherry from doing anything drastic.

"Ahem!" Applejack cleared her throat irritably.

"Oh! Ha. And Applejack," Rarity then concluded. "Sorry, you were standing a-I-I didn't see you."

"Nice cover up." Cherry muttered.

"They're our best friends. So... I thought you'd like to meet them." Rarity smiled nervously to Vignette.

"Mm-hmm..." Vignette replied, not sounding very interested, and where, just like any other girl, she seemed interested in Atticus with how masculine he was.

"I'm not sure how I feel about this girl." Atticus commented.

"Same here." Mo said before getting pushed away.

"You should know that any friend of Rarity's is a friend of mine~" Vignette smirked as she came up to Atticus, wrapping her arms around his strong shoulders.

"Um, that's nice to know." Atticus told her, unsure if he liked how she wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

"Uhhhh, fun fact, uh, we perform together in a band called the Rainbooms." Rarity told Vignette, a bit anxiously.

The band name seemed to catch Vignette's attention. "Rainbooms? Why is that familiar?" She asked before checking on her phone. "A hundred thousand followers? Focused consumer-centric demographic, too? Does your curated content consistently aggregate across multiple platforms?"

"We sing songs together!" Pinkie piped up.

Vignette gasped before getting an idea. "I am going to turn you into the centerpiece of tonight's light parade!"

"Are you sure?" Patch asked.

"Shhh... Are you ready?" Vignette shushed before putting her arm around him, wandering among the group. "B.Y.B.B. Be yourself, but better! That's been my power phrase since I started my first company. A middle school girl selling artisanal handmade mascara. 'But isn't that just melted crayons?' Hey, naysayers gonna nay. But I say B.Y.B.B."

"Um, how many people will be watching us?" Fluttershy asked.

"All of them!" Vignette beamed. "What do you say?"

"Well, if it's gonna help out Rarity..." Sunset said in a friendly way.

Most of the band agreed with this except for Applejack.

"Like, like, like, like, like, like," Vignette smiled as she took out her phone, liking photos of them. "Upload and post it, ladies. This'll trend fer sure! I'll you later with the exact deets. B.Y.B.B, Rare. V, out." She then left.

"Ugh..." Cherry groaned at the modern lingo.

"I know. She's amazing, right?" Rarity smiled to her friends.

"Um, she sure is something." Atticus smiled nervously.

"You said it." Applejack grumbled.

"Logistical question: How're we supposed to get our instruments?" Sci-Twi soon asked.

"Vignette will handle everything." Rarity said like it was obvious.

"Yeah, like the boss she is." Cherry muttered.

"Ah got a question, too," Applejack soon spoke up. "When you said she's your 'best friend at the park', did you mean 'best friend, comma, at the park'?"

"Did I say that?" Rarity asked before gasping. "Listen, tonight's a huge opportunity. And not just for me now, but for all of us!"

This made the others smile except for maybe Applejack who looked sour.

"Applejack, I'm sure Rarity did mean best friend, comma, at the park." Mo assured her once she saw her sour look.

"Hmm..." Applejack hummed to that, not sure.

"Let's go see the park!" Rainbow Dash suggested before zooming off.

"Should have known she would do that." Patch chuckled playfully, referring to Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow Dash then came back to look at the map with Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy.

"Man, there's lots of great rides here..." Atticus said. "Look, Cherry! A haunted house!"

"Awesome." Cherry replied.

Rarity walked up to Applejack to confront her, "Honestly, I don't know why you're giving me your frowny eyebrows."

"It's nuthin'." Applejack sighed.

Mo could already tell that was a lie.

"Uhhh, well, uh... enjoy the park. I'm gonna be super-busy preparing for tonight. So let's meet in the staging area for sound check and run-throughs," Rarity said to the country girl before laughing. "Cherry and I have three minutes' break at 4:00, and I can give you two of them. B.Y.B.B.! Rare, out!"

"Did she just say Be Yourself But Better?" Mo asked.

"I don't like this Vignette Valencia, she's changing Rarity, oh, well, at least Cherry hasn't changed." Atticus said.

"You know how non-conformist I am." Cherry reminded.

"Yeah." Atticus nodded.

"Oh, Cherry~" Rarity called out.

"Yes, Rarity...?" Cherry replied, sounding extremely hesitant and reluctant already.

"Come, we have work to do." Rarity smiled.

"Of course, Rarity..." Cherry forced a smile, but was screaming on the inside.

Rarity took her hand and pulled her off happily and excitedly.

"I hope Rarity doesn't start treating Cherry like an assistant." Patch said.

"Ooh... Cherry would flip over that..." Atticus said, a bit nervously. "She does not like being bossed around."

"Did she ever go crazy when ever Lady Tremain told her to do something she didn't want to do?" Mo asked.

"Yeah, but... She had to keep it to herself..." Atticus said as he began to remember those days.

* * *

Cinderella and Atticus were doing their own chores.

"Finally finished with the floor..." Cherry smiled as she polished the floor and was about to go to take a nap since she was working all day and felt exhausted now.

"I wonder how Cherry's doing with her chores?" Atticus said as he finished dusting.

Lady Tremaine soon walked out to check on them.

"Step-Mother, we've finished our chores." Cinderella said, showing she had dishpan hands due to washing dishes for a while.

"I see..." Lady Tremaine replied as she examined the room.

Atticus hoped that their step-mother was pleased.

Lady Tremaine slid her finger across the shelf that Atticus dusted. "Hmm... Not bad..." she then said to him.

"Thank you, ma'am..." Atticus smiled.

"I need someone to give Lucifer a bath..." Lady Tremaine said before calling out. "CHERRY!"

Cherry snored as she fell asleep in a chair due to working nearly all day long.

" **CHERRY!** " Lady Tremaine glared.

"Huh? What?" Cherry asked as she woke up.

"Give Lucifer a bath this instant!" Lady Tremaine demanded.

"But... I've been working for four hours straight..." Cherry said out of exhaustion.

"Did I ask you to give Lucifer a bath?" Lady Tremaine glared.

"Well... Yes... But..." Cherry stuttered.

"MOVE IT!" Lady Tremaine demanded before leaving.

Cherry soon mumbled under her breath, a little grumpily.

"What was that?" Lady Tremaine asked.

"I'll get right on it, Lady Tremaine..." Cherry said, a bit weakly.

Lady Tremaine nodded and then walked off and went upstairs before shutting the doors. Cherry soon yelled out and pounded on the floor, kicking the bucket and threw a tantrum.

"Whoa, Cherry, calm down." Atticus said.

"I worked for four hours... FOUR HOURS WITHOUT A BREAK! **AND SHE WANTS ME TO DO MORE**!" Cherry snapped.

"I understand Cherry, but she is the adult of the house." Atticus reminded her.

"I am just a kid..." Cherry grumbled. "THAT OLD BAT CAN WASH HER _OWN_ CAT!"

"Calm down..." Atticus smiled nervously.

" _YOU_ CALM DOWN!" Cherry glared.

Atticus soon splashed her with cold water.

"Gaaah..." Cherry shivered. "So cold..."

"Cherry, you know we can't disobey Step-Mother..." Cinderella reminded.

"I know..." Chery sighed.

"Why don't I help you out?" Atticus offered. "It'll get done faster and then maybe you can take a nap quicker?"

"Hmm... Sounds risky... What the heck?" Cherry shrugged.

"Great, then let's do it." Atticus said.

* * *

Atticus sighed about that memory. "I felt so bad for Cherry, she worked four hours straight and she didn't get a nap..." he then said to Mo once he finished the memory. "Can't say I blame her though."

"With that woman, I agree with you." Mo said.

"Can we go on the rides?" Patch asked Atticus while begging.

"Alright." Atticus chuckled.


	4. Chapter 4

They soon went to go and have some fun and started with a rollercoaster ride, and where it seemed to be scary from the ground to Fluttershy.

"Pretty great, right?!" Rainbow Dash laughed.

"What?!" Fluttershy yelped as she hid behind the map.

"Can you hear me over all the screaming?!" Rainbow Dash asked her.

"I can't hear you over all the screaming!" Fluttershy told her.

The screaming continued as people were already on the ride before them.

"Oh. I wish I'd gone with Sunset and Twilight," Fluttershy shivered. "Or Pinkie Pie. Or anyone else in the entire park."

"How about we start out with one of the other rides?" Atticus asked.

"Hey, good idea! A warm-up before the big game!" Rainbow Dash agreed. "Ooh! What did you have in mind? Dragon Lands Drag Racing? Ooh, the Appleloosa Runaway Train! Ooh, Neighagara Falls Barrel Flume?!"

"Mm-mm." Fluttershy shook her head before smiling and pointed to one ride.

* * *

They were soon on a rollercoaster that was for little kids.

 _'Well, this is a warm-up.'_ Patch thought to himself.

Fluttershy let out a scream before they went down a tiny hill. "Oh, these kids are so brave." she then smiled proudly at the kids who had fun on their rollercaster.

"Ugh." Rainbow Dash face-palmed to that.

Once they were done with that ride, they soon went on the rollercoaster that was much faster.

* * *

Cherry, Applejack, and Rarity soon walked together.

"Applejack, this parade is a living, breathing dance of light and sound!" Rarity smiled to her friend before calling out to the workers who had clothes for her to judge. "Love it, lock it, stitch it. Beautiful, perfect, I just threw up, love it. Now hurry up! I need these done yesterday!"

"And it begins..." Cherry quietly groaned. "Anyway, Applejack, I'm glad you're with us."

"Anythin' Ah can do to help?" Applejack offered.

"Play a great show tonight?" Rarity suggested with a smile before looking to the mascot and glared that way. "Excuse me! I know I am not seeing a lapped zipper on that faux fur! A lapped zipper is simply a stuck zipper waiting to happen! Ugh!" she then looked back to Applejack. "This is what I'm up against."

"Uh, yeah, she can tell." Cherry told her.

"So, uh... Wanna take a break and go get a caramel apple?" Applejack offered.

"That sounds pretty good." Cherry said.

"Oh, Cherry, we can't, we're a tad super busy, remember?" Rarity replied.

"Yeah, but a break would be good." Cherry said.

"In good time, in good time." Rarity told her.

"Of course. Ah-Ah just thought..." Applejack tried to say, but felt nervous. "Uh, never mind. You're right. I wouldn't wanna rain on your parade."

"Rain?! I didn't plan for rain!" Rarity yelped. "Cherry, get me 100 ponchos, stat!"

"Are you _telling_ me what to do?" Cherry glared.

"Cherry, you promised you'd help out, so I expect you to do it." Rarity said to her before walking off.

Cherry soon glared and her left eye twitched as her teeth clenched.

"Whoa, calm down, Sugar Cube, how about you come with me to take a break?" Applejack suggested the perky goth.

"Please...?" Cherry replied, a bit softly.

"Come on, let's go," Applejack smiled. "Ah'm sure Rarity will understand."

"Thanks, Applejack..." Cherry soon settled down.

They both soon left as Rarity kept on her work.

* * *

Meanwhile, some of the others were on the rollercoaster.

"I'm proud of you. You know that? You're facing your fears head-on," Rainbow Dash smiled to Fluttershy as they were riding up slowly. "Just like I always did as a kid. I mean, look, a 400 foot vertical drop right into these loop-de-loops and a corkscrew? You're probably super-nervous about that, I bet. Heh. And that next part where it goes backwards? Uh, how are you feeling, Fluttershy?"

"Fluttershy, you alright?" Patch asked.

Fluttershy quietly whimpered and looked terrified.

"Is it even safe to be this high up?" Rainbow Dash asked before seeing that Fluttershy was scared out of her wits. "You're probably thinking, 'Stop the ride! I want to get off!' That's what you want, right? Right now?"

"Don't worry, Fluttershy, you can do this." Atticus assured her.

Fluttershy scrunched up as she looked like she just wanted this to be over.

"You're about to yell it? Stop the ride!" Rainbow Dash smiled nervously before she soon got scared herself. "Seriously! Please, somebody stop the ride! **STOP THE RIIIIIIIDE!** "

The rollercoaster then took them down the hill through the tunnel and the other patrons were excited. Once the ride was over, Fluttershy actually looked like she enjoyed the ride.

* * *

"Whoa... Everything's spinning..." Atticus said with a chuckle.

"That was actually kind of fun." Fluttershy giggled.

"See? It wasn't so bad after all." Patch smiled.

"Totally! That's why I didn't want to get off!" Rainbow Dash laughed nervously. "I was just saying what you would've said. That's all."

"You were very brave." Fluttershy smiled, patting her shoulders.

"Yeah." Atticus and Patch added.

"Heh. You, too... By the way." Rainbow Dash chuckled sheepishly as she wobbled.

Fluttershy giggled to that before she got a text on her phone. Patch soon got a text as well. They both looked curious to each other, wondering what it was all about.

* * *

Meanwhile, Applejack wandered around with the map, seeming a little lost.

"The caramel apple stand should be around here somewhere." Cherry said.

"Apples! Caramel apples over here!" A boy called out from a stand. "We've got red and green and everything in between!"

"Micro Chips?!" Applejack asked him.

"Caramel Apple?" The boy smiled while Cherry nearly drooled.

"First, yes, second, you're working as caramel _girl_?" Cherry asked.

"Vignette said she wanted cool nerd chic. I'd say she found it. Wouldn't you?" Micro Chips replied.

"Uhh..." Cherry blinked, not sure how to respond, even as he got the apple stuck in the caramel. "Need some help with that?"

"Uh, do you by any chance have a knife or samurai sword or several tiny but very sharp nail clippers?" Micro Chips smiled sheepishly.

"Uh, no, sorry." Cherry said.

Micro Chips still struggled with the apple and soon got more apples stuck to him with the sticky caramel. Cherry and Applejack both winced to this, even when Micro Chips offered a couple of apples to them. They both soon noticed Fluttershy and Patch with Vignette.

"I know what you're thinking," Vignette talked with the two. "'But, Vignette, how can I ever thank you for coming up with such a brilliant idea for the parade?'."

"I don't understand," Vignette replied. "You want us to pretend we're someone else tonight?"

"Even I'm not sure how to understand about this." Patch said.

"Everyone in the band has a new role," Vignette replied. "It's part of my BOLD, NEW VISION! All caps, Helvetica, 65. 'Fluttershy: Bad Girl'. Patch, you can be The Bad Boy too, all girls love a bad boy. Spiked hair, ripped tights. I've already commissioned an A-list graffiti/sneaker artist to tag up a custom guitar. How do you feel about skulls? B.Y.B.B."

Fluttershy and Patch soon looked to each other, both concerned about that.

"Um, sorry, but I don't think I want to be a bad boy." Patch told Vignette.

"Uh, maybe you, um... Shouldn't do it. At all, and... Um... The same for me... As a bad girl." Fluttershy agreed softly.

Vignette looked to them with a small smirk. "You're right. If collabing isn't your thing, that's your life decision to make. But I just thought of a way for us both to get exactly what we want."

"You did?" Fluttershy smiled.

"Why don't I like that smirk on your face?" Patch asked.

"I don't know why you wouldn't, this is a good thing, of course," Vignette smiled innocently. "Getting what I want is what I do best, sweetie. Now say 'Cheese'!"

Fluttershy didn't even have time to react as Vignette soon brought out her phone to take a picture, but something strange happened, and where Fluttershy and Patch were what looked to be downloaded into her phone.

"Sorry, Fluttershy and Patch," Vignette cooed. "You'll thank me later."

* * *

Suddenly, Fluttershy and Patch were shown to be in a blank white room.

"Um, excuse me?" Fluttershy called as her voice echoed. "Vignette? Where am I?"

Patch soon noticed a bowl of fruit salad. "And can we eat this?" He then spoke up.

"I-I'm feeling stressed..." Fluttershy added.

Patch and Fluttershy frowned, both wondering how they would get themselves out of this one.

* * *

 ** _Meanwhile with Sci-Twi and Sunset..._**

Two game vendors soon tried to get their attention.

"Step right up! Don't be shy!"

"You like prizes? We got prizes!"

"Toss this ring onto any one of these bottles! Easiest game in the park!"

"Sounds like fun." Mo smiled.

"Wow! This game does look easy!" Sci-Twi approved.

"Would ya lookee here? Somebody who knows a thing or two about a thing or two!" Flim smiled.

"Guys, they're just giving ya the old bump-and-tingle to lure you in," Sunset sighed. "These games are rigged."

"And these two seem like the untrustworthy types." Mo said.

"Slanderous!" Flim replied.

"Libelous!" Flam added.

Mo narrowed her eyes to them.

"Do you know what's not rigged? The laws of physics," Sci-Twi told Mo and Sunset. "Assuming no air resistance and a vertical displacement of zero, horizontal displacement equals initial projectile velocity squared times the sine of twice the launch angle divided by the acceleration due to gravity."

"You're right." Mo smiled.

"You understood all of that?" Sunset asked Mo.

"Basically it's gravity; what comes up, must come down." Mo smiled.

'Oh... Right..." Sunset then said, a bit bashfully.

Sci-Twi soon gave Flim her ticket and picked up a ring to toss onto a bottle. She then aimed and the ring landed on the bottle, but was still spinning around the neck of the bottle. Mo began to bite on her nails.

"Oh, the suspense!" Flim cried out.

"The drama!" Flam added.

"I can't watch!"

"Hold me!"

Eventually, somehow, the ring bounced up off of the bottle.

"What?!" Mo gasped.

"Argh!" Sci-Twi groaned in defeat.

"You were pretty close, though," Sunset coaxed. "Maybe we should try one more time?"

"Yeah." Mo added.

Flim and Flam hid smirks to each other as the girls brought out more tickets to try out the game.

* * *

 ** _Meanwhile, back with Applejack and Cherry..._**

"This should be the set room." Cherry told Applejack before opening the door.

Workers appeared to be in a rush as they came inside.

"Finished!" Rarity smiled to a model, putting a special cowboy outfit on him before plugging in the cords. "Let there be light!" And where the lights on the outfit soon turned on.

"Maybe tonight won't be a disaster after all." Rarity smiled to the model.

Suddenly, the lights began to short-circuit and they powered down.

"I didn't do it!" Cherry cried out.

Rarity soon looked like she was about to lose it before keeping her cool.

The others looked concerned like they were expecting something.

"Will you, uh, excuse me for a moment?" Rarity asked before walking away and leaped into a pile of clothes, looking quite broken down. " **OF ALL THE OUTLANDISH CIRCUMSTANCES IN THE UNIVERSE, WHY ARE ALL THE WRETCHED THINGS HAPPENING TO _ME_?!**"

"I ask myself that question every time I get out of bed." Cherry commented.

"Hey, Rarity, how's-" Applejack was about to ask.

"I wasn't having a meltdown!" Rarity glared as she looked mentally unstable. "Who said I was having a meltdown?! I AM NOT HAVING A MELTDOWN!"

"Are you sure about that?" Cherry asked.

"GET ME A PROTEIN SHAKE!" Rarity told her, blowing her hair back.

Cherry felt disturbed to see Rarity acting like this and soon walked off, too shocked to react any other way.

"Uh, have you seen Fluttershy or Patch?" Applejack asked. "See, they went wanderin' off with Vignette and then just disappeared."

"Are you honestly asking me this right now?" Rarity asked.

"Oh, it's not that Ah don't trust Vignette, if that's what you're thinkin'." Applejack said to her.

"We're in a giant fun park with 50,000 people. 'Course you can't find them," Rarity replied before gasping. "50,000 people! All looking at my costumes!"

"Rarity, what about Fluttershy and Patch?" Cherry asked as she came back with a protein shake.

"Are you seriously not concerned about Fluttershy or Patch?" Applejack asked Rarity.

"That's a hundred thousand individual eyeballs, Applejack and Cherry." Rarity clarified.

"Well, if you ain't gonna worry about 'em, Cherry and Ah will!" Applejack replied.

"Come on, Applejack, let's go look for them." Cherry said.

The two soon walked away, leaving the fashionista alone.

" **SOMEBODY GET ME A BIGGER PILE OF CLOTHES TO SCREAM INTO!** " Rarity demanded like a diva.

Two set people soon placed more clothes into the pile. Rarity then jumped into them with a muffle.


	5. Chapter 5

**_Back with Sunset, Mo, and Sci-Twi..._**

"You can't mess with a girl who grew up on the sticks..." Mo glared to Flim and Flam. "I won't let you beat us!"

After they tossed another ring onto one of the bottles, it popped off.

"All right! What's next?" Sunset groaned. "What are we doing? How are we going to win this?!"

"Guess who just mapped out a perfect projectile trajectory taking into account propulsion, gravity, and aerodynamic drag! This gal!" Sci-Twi smiled after taking notes.

"Yes! We can win! We're going to win!" Mo cheered before laughing manically.

Sci-Twi and Sunset looked at her in concern.

"Betcha thought I forgot about friction, air drag, and veering initial velocities," Sci-Twi smirked to the con artist brothers. "Well, guess what. I didn't!"

"What she said!" Sunset added firmly.

Mo soon held out her ticket to the con artist brothers.

"You know what they say..." Flim smirked.

"Hundredth time's the charm." Flam smirked back.

"Oh, we're going to win." Mo glared.

Sunset took a right and Sci-Twi helped adjust her so that they could win a prize.

"Howdy, y'all!" Applejack's voice called as Sunset threw the ring.

And where it hit the bell on the strength test, and then hit one of the stuffed toys, and soon went through a kid's ice cream, causing it to splatter on him.

"Applejack!" Sci-Twi, Sunset, and Mo called out to the country girl.

"Sorry about that, guys." Cherry said nervously as she decided to stay with Applejack.

"What is so important that you had to interrupt Sunset's concentration?!" Mo twitched.

"Oh. Sorry. Have you seen Fluttershy? Nobody's seen her all afternoon," Applejack said to them. "Her phone's goin' straight to voicemail, and Patch doesn't seem to b around either. "Ah keep thinkin' somethin' real bad mighta happened."

"Lighten up, Applejack," Sunset smiled calmly. "There's not always a villain with Equestrian magic out to get us."

"That's right." Mo nodded.

"On a side note, do you have tickets we could borrow?" Sci-Twi asked. "Kinda used 'em all."

Flim and Flam were whistling innocently behind their stand. Applejack rolled her eyes to that and handed over her leftover tickets.

"Let's see if Atticus and Rainbow Dash have seen Fluttershy or Patch." Cherry said.

"We'll see you around then, just a head's up, I don't like to lose." Sunset warned.

"I kinda guessed that based on our first adventure in Canterlot High." Cherry smirked.

"Same here." Mo added.

* * *

Rainbow Dash stared at the rollercoaster and looked scared to death.

"Look, if you're scared of rollercoasters, it's okay..." Atticus said to her in comfort. "I won't judge."

"I-I'm fine." Rainbow Dash shivered.

Suddenly, Applejack and Cherry came over.

"Guys! Hey!" Rainbow Dash smiled. "I was just about to ride this thing for, like, the 10th time already!"

"Sure, let's go with that." Atticus said.

"Shhh! Nothin' outta you!" Rainbow Dash warned and Atticus just smirked.

"Uh, have you seen Fluttershy or Patch anywhere?" Applejack asked them.

"No, not since they left after getting a text." Atticus said.

"I think they went off with Vignette." Rainbow Dash added.

"Okay, thanks." Applejack replied.

"If you see 'em, tell 'em Fluttershy still owes me a rollercoaster ride!" Rainbow Dash told them.

"We will!" Cherry told her.

Rainbow Dash soon whimpered nervously.

"Rainbow Dash..." Atticus shook his head.

* * *

Applejack and Cherry were soon at the bumper cars, looking at the map. A whistle was then heard which made Cherry jolt.

"No frowning allowed!" Pinkie Pie scolded.

"How does she always find me?" Cherry groaned to herself. She soon took the map away and started to crumble it up.

"As 'Fun Inspector', I'm a little concerned about what I'm seeing here." Pinkie Pie said to the two.

"Pinkie, you work here now too?" Cherry asked.

"No, silly! Fun Inspectors are freelance! And don't get paid!" Pinkie Pie said to her. "And totally made up by me earlier today when I saw a little girl crying because she dropped her ice cream, and I said to myself, 'Pinkie Pie, this place isn't as fun as it could be!' Do you like the uniform? I made it out of things I found in the trash, but you can't even tell!"

"Uh, I think we can tell." Cherry said.

"Uh... So... Have you seen Fluttershy or Patch anywhere?" Applejack asked.

"Nope, but I have seen my Deputy Fun Inspector!" Pinkie Pie beamed to them. "Ta-da! Now you have all access to the entire park, Deputy Fun Inspector!"

"Uh, thanks." Cherry said.

Pinkie Pie soon let them go. Cherry and Applejack then walked off together, passing by the Tunnel of Love as Cherry's double seemed to be there with Thor.

* * *

"That was so romantic." Cherry 2 smiled.

"I'm glad you liked it..." Thor smiled back.

Cherry soon pulled her double away.

"Hey! What did I do?!" Cherry 2 glared.

"What did I say?!" Cherry scolded.

"But I love him!" Cherry 2 told her.

"You love the _idea_ of him..." Cherry replied.

Thor soon pulled away the original Cherry, his heart telling him the difference, and he looked very unhappy with her.

"Um, Thor, this isn't what it looks like." Cherry gulped.

"You're breaking my heart!" Thor cried out. "I'm gonna tell!"

"It's okay, Thor, she was just leaving." Cherry 2 told her new boyfriend.

"Uh, yeah, what she said." Cherry said.

"If you break my heart, I'm gonna tell my uncle." Thor pouted.

"Uh, that's not necessary!" Cherry yelped before dashing off.

"We're gonna need a new name for you..." Thor said to Cherry 2. "It's confusing with two Cherrys..."

"I agree." Cherry 2 nodded.

"Hmm... How about... Persephone?!" Thor grinned.

Cherry 2 didn't seem to like that name.

"Nah, I guess that's cheesy..." Thor said. "Um... Sif?"

"Sif?" Cherry 2 asked, hoping he was kidding.

"Right, that sounds like you're one of those Sith Lords from Star Wars." Thor nodded.

"I like that you're trying..." Cherry 2 said.

"Aw, thanks..." Thor smiled while thinking. "Uh... Zoe!"

"Hmm... Sounds perfect because it sounds like another perky goth." Zoe smiled.

"Really...?" Thor asked as they walked off together. "Who...?"

Zoe giggled as they walked off together.

"I guess I just gotta let this happen..." Cherry muttered to herself. She soon went back to Applejack.

* * *

Sci-Twi, Mo, and Sunset looked quite exhausted after being at the game for quite a while now.

"Wow..." Flim commented.

"So close..." Flam added.

"That's it! Those bottles are rigged I know it!" Mo exclaimed. "Admit it, you two con artists!"

"Um, hey, listen, lady." Flim replied.

"Uh, how about you just take a parakeet and go home?" Flam added.

"What the heck is that supposed to mean?!" Mo glared. She soon saw something strange about the bottles once she leaned closer to the con artists with a glare.

"How about we get some ice cream?" Sci-Twi suggested.

"Hold on a minute..." Mo told her as she glared to the two.

"Uh, can we help you?" Flim and Flam asked her, a bit nervous from her glare.

"Those bottles look strange." Mo smirked while glaring at the two con artists.

"What ever do you mean?" Flim replied.

"What I mean is those bottles look like one of those trick bottles that make it almost impossible for anyone to get a ring on them." Mo smirked.

"We don't know what you could possibly mean..." Flam said, a bit nervously.

Mo swiped a bottle and soon put a ring on it, but it bounced right off. "Aha!" she then smirked. "I was right!"

Flim and Flam shivered nervously. Mo smirked darkly to them while Sunset and Sci-Twi looked annoyed and outraged. Everyone else soon felt the same way toward the con artist brothers. Flim and Flam closed their booth and soon ran away.

"Chickens." Mo muttered.

* * *

Meanwhile, Applejack and Cherry sat on a bench together.

"...Or maybe I want her to be my prime suspect because she's Rarity's new best friend at the park," Applejack muttered. "Am Ah goin' crazy over a whole lot o' nothin'?"

"Applejack, stop, your anxiety is giving me anxiety." Cherry groaned.

"Sorry, but it's just that Vignette is givin' me a bad feelin' is all." Applejack told her.

"What's that badge ya got there?!" A security guard snapped.

"Ah, uh... Y-Y-You see, it-it's just-" Applejack stammered.

"Whoa, Gramps, we don't want any trouble..." Cherry told him. "Our friend gave her the badge."

"It's a crime to fake security badges, you know," The security guard glared. "I'm a fake cop, but I can send ya to real jail!"

"Uh, if you'll just let me explain," Applejack said. "We're lookin' for our friends, and-"

"Shhh! Hands on your head!" The security guard glared, grabbing Cherry's arm and forcing her to the wall. "No sudden moves! Got that?"

"Yes, sir, but didn't you say that you were a fake cop?" Cherry asked.

"Don't test me, girly!" The security guard glared.

Applejack soon went to hand over the badge.

"Ooh..." The security guard then calmed down, dropping Cherry. "Why didn't ya tell me you were a Deputy Fun Inspector?!"

Cherry was about to tell him that they weren't but this gave her an idea. Applejack wasn't sure how to react, but saw that Cherry had an idea and let her handle this.

"I am so sorry about that, ma'am," The security guard smiled as he brought them inside of a room. "Uh, here's my workstation. It hasn't been fun-inspected in years."

"We can tell, anyway, do you mind if we look over your security footage?" Cherry asked.

"Not at all!" The security guard chuckled, patting her on the back. "I'll be in the park if ya need me."

Cherry forced a big smile and when he left, she rushed to the cameras. "Okay, now this should be able to help us find out where Fluttershy and Patch are." She said.

"Let's see what we got then." Applejack replied.

"Hmm... Come on, come on..." Cherry said while examining. "Hey, is that Atticus and Rainbow Dash with Vignette?"

"Looks like it." Applejack replied.

* * *

"Rarity told me you're the coolest, smartest friends who know what's the opposite of down. What's up!" Vignette smiled to Atticus and Rainbow Dash as they walked together.

"True." Rainbow Dash shrugged.

"I have a bold new vision for the Rainbooms that you are going to love!" Vignette smiled to them. "The Throwbacks! Capital T, #TBT, Throwback Today. Or for short, T.C.T.H.T.B.T.[T.B.T.], pronounced 'ta-ca-ta-ca-ba-ta'! You are going to represent the touchstones of cool throughout the ages!"

"And I thought Cherry's dad needed a lesson with acronyms online," Atticus muttered with a smirk. "I just know that Rainbow Dash will be on board with all this."

"I like it so far, and I assume I'll like what you say next." Rainbow Dash said to Vignette.

"Of course you do." Atticus smirked.

"Rainbow Dash and Atticus Fudo: 50's Sockhop Sweethearts! Poodle skirt, adorable blonde hair with jet black hair and a leather jacket," Vignette told them. "How do you feel about shaving your heads? I only ask 'cuz you'll definitely have to do it for the wig."

"Not happening." Atticus glared.

"How about you?" Vignette then asked Rainbow Dash.

"Uhhh... There is no way anyone is shaving my head." Rainbow Dash replied.

"B.Y.B.B.?" Vignette reminded.

"Never happening in the history of ever." Atticus glared.

"B.I.A. _A_.T.B: But I already _am_ the best?" Rainbow Dash added with a smirk.

"Well, if you insist on just, ugh, being yourself or whatever, then at least let me take a picture of the real you." Vignette told them before taking out her phone and taking a picture of them, and where what happened to Patch and Fluttershy happened to them too.

* * *

"Applejack, did you see that?!" Cherry flipped out.

"Vignette zappin' our friends with a magical phone?!" Applejack relied. "Ah knew she was up to somethin'! Just wasn't expectin' somethin' so magic and evil. She makes 'em disappear, but where do they go?"

* * *

Atticus and Rainbow Dash soon appeared in the same area as Patch and Fluttershy and bowl of fruit salad.

"Atticus!" Patch called out and soon ran up to him, tackling him to the floor and licked his face, feeling very happy to see him.

"Patch!" Atticus laughed before realizing what this meant. " We're inside Vignette's magical phone, aren't we? "

"Mm-hmm..." Patch pouted and nodded.

"Great, fantastic." Atticus groaned as he face-palmed.

"Aw, man! Are we trapped in a magical phone? Typical," Rainbow Dash complained. "You gonna eat that stress salad?"

Patch and Fluttershy then allowed them to have some.


	6. Chapter 6

**_Meanwhile with the others..._**

Rarity was hard at work and little-by-little, she was getting more and more stressed out, and without Cherry helping her, the stress was starting to get closer. Mo, Sunset, Pinkie Pie, and Sci-Twi were soon altogether, being fitted for new outfits.

"I suppose Applejack and Cherry have better things to do than final fittings and sound check!" Rarity sighed.

"They're searching for the others which is way more important than this." Mo said.

"Yeah, don't be mad at them." Sunset added.

"Do not tell me who to be annoyed with!" Rarity glared.

"Rarity, calm down, this is may be a parade, but our friends could be in trouble." Mo said.

"Mo's right! I'm sure you've got something totally amazing up your sleeve!" Pinkie Pie added, checking Rarity's arms, though she was sleeveless and took her own metaphor seriously. "You did remember to wear sleeves with amazing things up them, right?"

"Uh, Pinkie Pie, that's not exactly what I mean..." Mo muttered slightly.

"STOP!" Cherry and Applejack called out.

"Did you find the others?" Mo asked Cherry and Applejack.

"Uh, well, kinda sorta, but, no one stay alone with Vignette Valencia, okay?" Cherry replied, a bit nervously.

"What?" Mo asked. "Why?"

"You can explain yourselves after the parade," Rarity told them. "I'm sure-"

"No, Rarity, Vignette is evil!" Cherry and Applejack told her.

The door then closed which made them all look that way.

"She is?" Mo asked.

"Guys, she can hear you!" Pinkie Pie whispered loudly to Cherry and Applejack.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious." Cherry groaned.

"She's done somethin' to Fluttershy and Patch, and we saw her from the security office when she made Rainbow Dash and Atticus disappear with her phone!" Applejack defended. "Ten eggs in a chicken coop says it's Equestrian magic."

"Oh, honey, delusional isn't your color," Vignette cooed. "You're an autumn."

"Quit the innocent act!" Cherry glared at Vignette.

"What are you talking about?" Vignette replied.

"This! Say goodbye to your mannequin!" Cherry glared, swiping her phone and used it to take a picture to make it go away, but nothing was happening. "Huh? What gives?"

"Uh, Ah think ya hashgabbed my SnapTag or all in the-" Applejack said to Cherry.

Cherry groaned as she felt frustrated and unfortunate. "How did she do it?!" She groaned.

Rarity looked quite unhappy.

"Ugh, Ah can't figure out these new, fandangled apps," Applejack grumbled as she took a look, then caught what she said. "Ugh, Ah sound just like Granny Smith!"

"I just saw your friends," Vignette smiled innocently as she took her phone back to pose and take a picture with Rarity. "They're in wardrobe, and they're fine."

"Liar!" Cherry glared.

"Are you sure?" Rarity asked Vignette.

"And looking good in your costumes, by the way." Vignette smiled to her.

"Applejack, Cherry, the parade is less than an hour away, and-" Rarity soon said to the country girl and perky goth.

"This is so much bigger than the parade, Rarity," Cherry told her. "And so much more important!"

" _Nothing_ is bigger or more important than the parade, Cherry!" Rarity scolded.

Applejack felt stunned before glaring. "Ah know you didn't just say that about yer missin' friends!"

"I'm gonna let you guys sort this out amongst yourselves." Vignette suggested as she soon walked off and snapped her fingers to make the others leave, and where just like that, the other people left the room.

"Guys, admit it! You don't care about my parade!" Rarity glared to Cherry and Applejack.

"This isn't about you!" Cherry told her. "Vignette took our friends away from us!"

"Is this about our friends? Or about you two and Vignette?" Rarity asked.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Cherry glared.

Pinkie Pie looked startled from the drama.

"You've heard me," Rarity glared back to Cherry. "Ever since she gave me this opportunity, you've been jealous because she sees my potential but she didn't hire Applejack, and you promised to help me!"

"You guys! Stop!" Sci-Twi begged.

"I was helping you, but then you started to treat me like I'm you assistant!" Cherry glared at Rarity.

"Yer so blind, you can't even see she's usin' you!" Applejack added. "You only like her because she's always blowin' smoke up yer chimney! But that's what she does to everyone!"

"YOU'RE _NOT_ SPECIAL!" Cherry and Applejack soon both yelled out. They both soon realized what they said.

"Maybe... We should just... Go..." Applejack said softly.

"Maybe you should." Rarity replied.

Applejack and Cherry both soon left.

"Guys, wait!" Sunset called out to Cherry and Applejack.

Rarity soon began to break down into tears.

"I better go comfort her." Mo said.

Cherry grumbled to herself, staring at the floor and kicking a stone in her path, looking quite irritated and emotional. Sci-Twi, Sunset, and Pinkie Pie soon got off the parade float.

"Waiting is for waiters, ladies," Vignette told them. "We're better off without her."

"We?" Sci-Twi replied.

"The Throwbacks, formerly known as the Rainbooms." Vignette informed.

"Hold on why does 'we' include you?" Sunset asked her.

"Obviously, somebody needs to fill Applejuice and Cheddar's spots," Vignette replied. "And since it's so last-minute, we are lucky to have someone with as much vision and talent as moi."

"Uh... You?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"And not just that!" Vignette continued. "We'll be playing a song I wrote!"

"Okay, one, you are not in the band and two, there is no way we're performing without Applejack or Cherry." Sunset glared at Vignette.

"Which are their names, by the way, not Applejuice and Cheddar." Pinkie Pie added.

"And you know what? Applejack's not usually one to make things up, like, ever." Sci-Twi informed.

"I don't think Cherry would lie about this either," Sunset agreed before suddenly glaring at Vignette. "So, all that stuff they said about you..."

"Ah, it's true." Vignette smirked as she looked at her phone before she did the same thing to Pinkie Pie, Sunset, and Sci-Twi that she did to the others.

"Now let's see if this Equestrian magique is all it's cracked up to be," Vignette smirked as she brought out her phone, dressing an avatar that looked like Sunset Shimmer like in a dress-up game, putting her in an outfit before putting holograms of the band in the outfits she wanted up on the parade float. "Now then... That's better. I wish I'd had this thing years ago! Think how perfect my life could've looked!"

* * *

Mo and Rarity soon came out after some comforting.

"Rare, you're not gonna believe this!" Vignette squealed.

"What? What is it? What am I looking at?" Rarity asked.

"Your friends, but better!" Vignette smiled. "Now we can make the parade exactly how I want it!"

"Don't you mean how Rarity wants it?" Mo glared.

"Well, I needed her vision to bring out my vision, but now there's an app for that." Vignette replied.

"Vignette, wh-what is going on here?" Rarity demanded. "Where are our friends?!"

"Like, trapped in the internet as zeroes and ones or erased from existence or something?" Vignette relied innocently.

"So then Applejack and Cherry were telling the truth!" Mo glared. "Give back our friends this instant!"

"Fine. If you wanna be with them so bad, I'll do you one last favor," Vignette smirked as she held out her phone to zap them away next. "You're welcome."

* * *

 ** _Meanwhile with the others..._**

"I can't believe we're trapped in Vignette's phone." Sci-Twi groaned.

"We're no strangers to getting stuck in magical objects." Rainbow Dash reminded, trying to keep cool.

"At least Rarity, Applejack, Cherry, and Mo are still free," Sunset told them. "Maybe they can get us out of here."

"They have to stop fighting first." Fluttershy trembled.

"We can't just sit around hoping to get rescued," Sci-Twi sighed as she soon stood up. "If we're in the internet, we can hack our way out! Well, I can. Maybe."

"Oh, I hope Rarity, Cherry, and Applejack are okay," Fluttershy frowned. "I wish we knew what's going on out there."

* * *

 **Meanwhile, back with Mo, Rarity, and Vignette...**

"Sorry, Rare, guess you're not so 'rare' after all." Vignette smirked as she held out her phone to Rarity and Mo to make them be next.

Mo and Rarity winced, fearing the worst, but nothing had happened.

"Okay, that was your cue to disappear." Vignette glared before trying again.

And where Rarity used her magic power to protect them.

"I'd call that a Gem Shield, but I don't know if we can use that from Beach City." Mo commented.

"But still, never underestimate a good accessory!" Rarity smirked towards Vignette with a nod to Mo.

Vignette tried to shoot them again only to get blocked. "Stop un-magique-ing my magique thingy!"

"Never!" Mo smirked.

Vignette and Rarity growled, using their powers against each other.

"I can't believe I listened to you over Applejack or Cherry!" Rarity glared at Vignette before running off after using a special energy shot.

Mo soon rushed off with Rarity.

"Hey! U-G-H! Whatevs! I don't need you anyway," Vignette glared before she seemed to becoming a monster. "Attention, people who work for me! I am now the lead costume designer because our former lead costume designer is being HBW. Herself, but worse! Now pretend I just gave you an inspiring speech and get back to work!"

The workers soon ran off as they were now terrified of her.

* * *

 ** _Meanwhile..._**

"Ugh... I'm going home..." Cherry said as she walked off as it was getting dark. She soon saw Applejack still sad over what they said to Rarity. "Oh, Applejack... I'm sorry..." she said to her, though a little wore out, but just as miserable as she was.

They soon saw everyone making their way to the parade.

"The parade's about to start!" Applejack gasped before groaning. "If only Ah had done somethin' or said somethin' different! Maybe none of this woulda happened. Ah really screwed things up with Rarity."

"No, both of us did." Cherry sighed.

"Applejack! Cherry!" Rarity's voice called out.

"Rarity?" Applejack and Cherry replied before turning around to see the girl running towards them with Mo.

"Don't go!" Rarity panted out of breath.

"Please don't!" Mo added.

"Don't go!" Rarity gasped.

"Um...?" Cherry blinked a couple of times.

"You were right. I got carried away and let this stupid parade become the only thing that mattered to me!" Rarity confessed. "And I let Vignette manipulate me with false flattery into forgetting what really matters: my friends."

"Come on now, your talent puts you so far beyond the need for flattery." Applejack assured her.

"Stop flattering me!" Rarity cried out, turning red in the face. "I've not finished apologizing! I'm sorry I lost sight of why we applied for jobs here in the first place."

"And Ah'm sorry I got jealous," Applejack sighed. "All this time Ah thought Ah was bein' honest with you about not likin' Vignette. Ah wasn't bein' honest with myself. Ah felt like Ah was losin' my best friend."

"You didn't," Rarity smiled as she and Applejack blushed as they held hands. "Caramel apples to the end?"

Applejack nodded with a smile and blushing.

"Now kiss!" Cherry called out.

Applejack and Rarity blushed with wide eyes to that.

"Sorry, sorry, I couldn't help it." Cherry chuckled.

"Before anything else, there's something else you have to know." Mo told Applejack and Cherry.

"Dare I ask?" Cherry asked, a bit nervous.

"Our friends! Vignette has them all trapped in the internet!" Rarity cried out. "She confessed! We have to get them out! We have to save them!"

"What?! We've been wastin' all this time chin-waggin' about feelin's?!" Applejack replied. "We need to get crackin' on a rescue plan!"

Applejack's phone soon started ringing. Cherry's phone also rang and the two answered their phones together.

"Atticus?/Twilight?"

 ** _"It worked! Applejack, we're stuck in Vignette's phone!"_** Sci-Twi smiled before explaining. **_"I found a way to hack her apple popper app to route a VoIP connection to your IP address!"_**

"Same here!" Atticus replied.

"Uh... Magic. Got it." Applejack replied.

 ** _"Listen. We've come up with a plan to set all this right. You'll need to remotely install a virus that creates a backdoor admin account, which you can use to reset all the permissions on her phone and make a proxy backup. That should get us out of here!"_** Atticus then said. **"Cherry, you love computers, surely you can do some sort of coding?"**

"Um, none." Cherry said.

 ** _"Cherrryyy..."_ **Atticus frowned.

" _Attyyyy_..." Cherry replied in the same way.

"And, uh, Ah can rub two stick together, that's all." Applejack said.

 **"Oh, boy. Okay. Get a pencil."** Sci-Twi replied.

"Wait... Atticus, I don't have super-hearing, but I feel like I can hear you and Sci-Twi close by." Cherry said.

 ** _"What? But how's that possible?"_ **Atticus asked as his voice seemed to echo from her phone and from somewhere else.

"Gah!" Cherry yelped from the sound.

"She's right! Yer somewhere close!" Applejack added before going to a door and opened it to find their friends at long last.

* * *

"Seriously?" Cherry asked. "You've been in a random white room this whole time?!"

"We were just standing in a white room the whole time?" Sunset asked out of annoyance.

"I _just_ said that." Cherry muttered.

"Wait, you guys didn't know that?" Pinkie Pie smiled innocently.

Sunset soon turned bright red with anger and annoyance. Atticus and Sci-Twi both blushed out of embarrassment. Suddenly, Micro Chips appeared.

"Micro Chips?!" Sci-Twi looked at him. "Did Vignette take your picture just now?"

"I was just minding my own business making perfect caramel apples, when suddenly, Vignette saw me and said I wasn't as cool a nerd as she thought," Micro Chips explained. "Then she took my picture, and I ended up here, violating all known laws of space and time."

"Any more surprises?" Cherry muttered as she leaned against the door-frame before a shadow came over her.

"You won't believe who's behind you." Mo said.

"Can't I just win for once?!" Cherry cried out in misfortune. She soon saw who casted the shadow over her. "Hi, there~..." she then smiled innocently.

"Where's my nephew?" Drell asked her, a bit emotionless.

"How're you doing?" Cherry asked him back. "Is that a new haircut? I'm quite partial to-"

" _WHERE_ is my _NEPHEW_?" Drell repeated, a bit sharply.

"He's with my double!" Cherry told him.

"So... You let her out..." Drell smirked.

"Is that why you came here to give me a heart attack?!" Cherry asked.

"I just wanted to see if you were going through with it or procrastinating." Drell smirked.

"Actually, she let herself out." Cherry said.

Drell glanced at her.

"Please don't send me to Mars!" Cherry begged.

"You guys have to stop Vignette Valencia before she corrupts all of Equestrian Magic," Drell told them. "She's turning into a monster worse than Gaea Everfree."

"Wait, she's at the parade!" Mo panicked.

"Everyone in the park is watching that parade!" Sci-Twi gasped to that. "If her phone teleports that many people into this tiny room at the same time-"

"Squish City!" Pinkie Pie piped up.

"Our friends are in that crowd!" Rarity yelped before thinking of someone very important. "Sweetie Belle is in that crowd! We've got to stop her!"

"And Cherry, if she has your double, you'll cease to exist." Drell added as a major plot twist.

"What?!" Cherry panicked.

"So, no pressure, I'm off." Drell smiled before leaving.

"Wait, Rarity, if we stop the parade, no one will be able to see all your hard work." Mo frowned.

"I think we need to remember that if my double gets taken, I WON'T EXIST ANYMORE!" Cherry cried out.

"Someone reminded me that none of that matters without my friends." Rarity told Mo.

Applejack blushed with a smile and where she noticed a playful smirk on Patch's face as he knew what that blush meant.

"We'd better hurry!" Sunset warned the others. "I'm sure Vignette's getting more corrupted by Equestrian magic every minute!"

"Would my life really matter if I didn't exist?" Cherry wondered. "What would be different?"

"We'd miss you, silly." Pinkie Pie told her.

"You especially..." Cherry muttered.

"Yeah!" Pinkie Pie beamed and hugged Cherry tightly.

"This must be how Cranky Doodle Donkey feels." Cherry mumbled.


	7. Chapter 7

**_Meanwhile at the parade..._**

Cherry's double AKA Zoe was in fact at the parade with Thor as he held her in his arm due to his deep love and support for her.

"Be yourself, but better, Or don't be yourself at all, Follow Vignette on SnapGab, That's V-I-G-N-E-T-T-EEEEEEE!~" Vignette sang to the crowd, but it was very off-key.

"Hey! How about you get some singing lessons!" Zoe complained. "Or better yet, stop singing entirely!"

The crowd jeered along with her.

"I sing better in the shower!" Thor added.

"This crowd isn't cheering enough for my taste," Vignette muttered to herself before bringing out her magical phone. "Luckily, that can be tweaked with the flick of a finger. Say 'cheese', everyone!" But before she could take the picture, her parade float was stopped and lifted.

Patch, Atticus, and Applejack all lifted it together.

"Sorry to rain on your parade!" Cherry smirked.

"Nice one." Atticus smirked back as he Patch and Applejack let the parade float land back on the ground.

"But I'm afraid this evening is cancelled," Rarity told Vignette. "Now turn off your phone and hand it over!"

"What's going on?" Thor wondered as he stood with Zoe as everyone else was just as confused.

"Are you honestly asking a social media star to hand over her phone?" Vignette scoffed.

"Yes, she is." Cherry nodded.

"Rarity, this is the version of your friends that will be popular," Vignette told the fashionista. "I have the metrics to back that up."

Rarity and Applejack both looked unimpressed by that.

"Doesn't matter if they're real. It's what you show people online," Vignette continued. "This is your chance to be everything you've always wanted!"

"Still confused what's going on." Thor said.

"You're not the only one, Muffin." Zoe agreed as she hugged him.

"No! It's a chance to look like everything I've always wanted!" Rarity told Vignette. "What I really want has been right in front of me the whole time! My friends!"

Applejack and Rarity then joined hands and that made them both glow. The others soon joined their hands with them. This caused all of them to pony-up. This also surprised Vignette a lot.

"No amount of online success is worth it without my real life friends to share in it!" Rarity glared to Vignette.

Each of the geodes soon glowed as green electricity went to Rarity. The others smiled as they felt proud of Rarity for learning a lesson. Rarity soon had her own line of electricity and thrashed it against Vignette's phone, destroying it itself with the holograms along with it.

"What have you done?!" Vignette snapped. "Now how can things ever be perfect?!"

The group soon landed on the parade float.

"I love nothing more than someone telling me I made a perfect outfit, but I'd say you got a bit carried away." Rarity told the celebrity.

"I-I... Guess so..." Vignette replied, uneasily.

"You guess so? You were just about to send all these people to Squish City which would be a simple white room in the park!" Cherry told her.

The whole crowd disapproved of that, but of course, Thor was the most vocal of them, being quite loud at times.

"No! No, no, no, I don't like that." Thor commented among the rabble of the crowd.

"But BYBB..." Vignette pouted.

"It's not a bad thing to want to be better, but not at the expense of others or your friends." Mo told her.

"Friends?" Vignette sighed to that. "I have 3,000,000 followers, but no real friends. How pathetic is that?!"

"Hmm... You've got one. If you want." Rarity smiled softly.

"Make that two." Applejack added.

Vignetter smiled as she accepted their friendship. This made the crowd cheer and applaud.

"Why are they clapping? Do they even know what's going on?" Pinkie Pie asked.

Fluttershy shrugged to that.

"I love the Pony Girls!" Thor beamed which made them anime sweat drop slightly.

"Not the sharpest crayon in the pack, is he?" Cherry muttered.

Rainbow Dash soon checked on SnapGab to see why the crowd was cheering and applauding. "Whoa! The Rainbooms are trending on SnapGab!" she then told the others.

"People are saying that rainbow laser thing was the coolest light parade show they've ever seen!" Pinkie Pie beamed.

Thor soon reached out and grabbed Cherry with his phone after pulling Zoe in his other arm. "Selfie! I wanna selfie with two of the cutest girls in the universe!" he then beamed while taking a picture.

"Uh, thanks, I think, but Thor, I think you should just stick with Zoe." Cherry told him.

"Come on! Double Trouble!" Thor smiled.

"Okay, fine, but one picture..." Cherry groaned.

Thor smiled as he took a picture of the three of them.

"Aw, it's so cute~" Drell cooed to his nephew.

"Thanks." Thor smiled back.

Cherry soon got out of Thor's hold and began to run for her life.

"Not sure what you see in her, but good job." Drell muttered slightly. He soon saw that Zoe didn't get out of Thor's hold.

"You're so snuggly with those muscles." Zoe smiled.

"Gah, this must be the _perky_ in _perky_ goth." Drell grumbled.

"You know it." Zoe told him.

"Can we go out to SugarCube Corner together?" Thor pouted to his uncle. "Pleeeeeeeaaaase?"

"Alright, alright." Drell said.

"Yes!" Thor beamed as he held onto Zoe again.

Zoe smiled as she nuzzled up to him while blushing.

"Hey, maybe the parade ain't ruined after all!" Applejack smiled.

"We do still have our real instruments up there." Sunset added.

"You're not too nervous?" Rainbow Dash asked Fluttershy.

"I should ask you the same thing." Fluttershy replied.

"That rollercoaster really gave Fluttershy her confidence." Atticus smiled.

"Yeah, I suppose it did," Rainbow Dash smiled back. "I feel so proud!"

"I think we all are." Mo smiled back.

"So, uh, Applejack, you wanna play?" Cherry suggested.

"If you're up for it." Rarity added.

Applejack soon nodded as the crowd cheered for them.

"Then let's rock out!" Mo cheered.

* * *

They soon got their instruments ready to give a special song to the crowd.

"A blemish on the surface, Of a perfect happy pic, Just add a fancy filter, And that's an easy fix~," Rarity began to sing. "But behind that perfect snapshot, Are the people who you love, Don't forget those happy moments, Are because of~"

"Our memories together~" Applejack sang.

"They will last forever~" Mo sang.

"We won't let this break us~" Applejack sang.

"We'll get through whatever~" Rarity sang.

"Side by side on this adventure, Our friendship will never, ever end~," The Rainbooms all sang. "Side by side, besties forever, We know that it's more than just a trend~"

"'Cuz it's you~" Atticus sang.

"And me~" Cherry sang.

"That's how it should be~" The Rainbooms sang.

"The whole world stands before you, Full of things to see, Pay attention or you'll miss it, Life's best is always free~," Applejack took a solo. "Don't lose sight of what's important, Give more than you can take, There's so much to strive for, So many friendships you can make~"

"All those likes can measure~" Rarity sang.

"The fun we have together~" Applejack sang.

"When we're in the moment~" Rarity and Applejack both sang.

"Everything is better~" Cherry sang, trying to avoid the gaze of the audience so she wouldn't freak out.

"Side by side on this adventure, Our friendship will never, ever end~," The Rainbooms all sang. "Side by side, besties forever, We know that it's more than just a trend~"

"This is how it should be~" Rarity and Applejack then concluded.

The instruments then faded out with the singing and the crowd applauded them.

* * *

After some time, they left the park.

"Well, that was a lot of fun." Sci-Twi said.

"Sure was," Mo said before smirking. "Sorry my brother couldn't be here, Twilight~"

"It's alright, I'm sure he was busy." Sci-Twi blushed.

Mo giggled a bit.

"Cheeky." Atticus teased his girlfriend.

"Whatever you say." Mo teased back.

"I'm exhausted..." Cherry said.

"All right, Cherry, we'll see you later then. Sunset said.

Cherry nodded and soon went to go back home. Everyone else soon went home too.

* * *

Cherry flopped onto her bed and cuddled with the sheets and locked the door even though she wasn't allowed to for her bedroom. "Now for some rest." She said.

* * *

Atticus soon walked Mo home like he usually did so they could be alone together. Once there, Mo went inside. Atticus gave her a kiss goodbye. Mo waved as she then went inside to relax. Once home, Atticus did the same.

* * *

Patch laid on the couch while having the TV on.

"Well, that must've been some park if you guys were gone all day." Emily chuckled.

"You could say that it was magical." Patch said.

"I know what that means..." Emily said. "Was it Equestrian?"

"Yeah, Mom," Atticus replied. "You know, the magic of friendship."

"Who was being corrupted this time?" Emily asked.

"Well, Rarity wasn't being her generous self..." Atticus began to explain. "She got a bit bossy when she was being brainwashed by Vignette Valencia."

"Whoa." Emily said.

"It was a pretty big adventure, Mom, I'm sure we're done for a while..." Atticus smiled. "This was a great summer though."

"Hope you're ready for back to school then." Emily giggled.

"Maybe." Atticus shrugged.

"Why does summer go by so quickly every year?" Patch pouted.

"Sorry, Patch, that's just how it goes sometimes." Emily soothed him.

"True." Patch shrugged.

Emily soon decided to give them their dinner right to them since they were clearly exhausted from today's adventure.

The End


End file.
